The present invention relates to a storage device for packaged goods comprised of a storage area having a plurality of parallel storage tracks for the packaged goods whereby in each one of the storage tracks only one type of goods is positioned, a feeding area at one end of the storage tracks with means for feeding new packaged goods into the respective storage tracks, and an order filling area at the upper end of the storage tracks with removal devices for a computer-controlled transfer of individual packaged goods from the storage track onto a transporting device arranged downstream.
Storage devices which are designed to automatically fill orders from a client have gained wide use in all areas of commerce and especially also in wholesale grocery sales. However, the storage technology, i.e., the static storage of individual packaged goods, is of reduced importance while the dynamic processes and also the transfer (handling) of goods has gained in importance. The goal of modern storage technology is to reduce the residence time of individual packaged goods in the storage facility and to thus reduce the capital overhead that results from large numbers of stored goods.
The known storage devices for automatically filling orders received from a client are multi-shelf systems with storage tracks or aisles that are arranged adjacent to one another and above one another. The shelves of the thus formed storage tracks are provided with roller tracks of freely rotatable rollers and are positioned at a slight downward slant so that at the upper end of the storage track, the so-called loading or supply side, the packaged goods to be transported will move automatically by their own weight along the roller track to the opposite end of the storage track, the removal end or order filling side. The supply of packaged goods onto the supply side is, in general, performed manually by placing the individual packaged goods, received on a pallet, onto the respective designated storage track. Also, the order filling process at the removal side is also usually performed by hand.
However computer-controlled and movable removal devices in the form of conveying devices are also known which can move along the aisles of the shelves at the order filling side. They can thus fill an order by removing the individual packaged goods from the respective storage track and moving it to a central collecting location. The conveying devices can be moved by respective guides in two coordinate directions so that the transporting device can have access to storage tracks arranged atop one another as well as adjacent to one another.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a storage device of the aforementioned kind with which the transfer rate for the packaged goods can be increased, i.e., the residence time of packaged goods in the storage facility can be reduced.